The New Orleans Youth Program Quality Initiative (NOLA-YPQI) was launched in 2015 to establish a system that would raise the bar for quality in out-of-school-time programs in New Orleans and produce better developmental outcomes for children and youth for years to come. YPQI is based on the David P. Weikart Center for Program Quality’s youth program quality intervention, which has been adopted by more than 4,000 programs in 41 states. This model draws on the latest research on youth program quality to assist program staff in assessing the quality of their programs, planning for improvement, and participating in coaching and professional development experiences that help them institute measurable quality improvements. 

This is Year 10 of the Youth Program Quality Initiative (YPQI)! The goals of this network are to recognize, support and improve the quality of youth programming and to develop the skills/toolkit of youth workers throughout New Orleans. Last year, NOYA had 50 organizations join us for the journey of looking closely at their programming, and digging deep to identify areas they would like to examine more closely to build BIG Goals and Improvement Plans.

What your organization gets access to as a YPQI Network Member:

1. Free access to NOYA-facilitated professional development workshops for you, your staff, volunteers and board. Learn more here.

2. Free access to high-quality, strategic, individualized program coaching from executive level leadership.  Ever wish you had a thought-partner for some of this work? You got it!

3. Free access to one (or more!) of NOYA's assessments to take a closer look at the quality of your youth work.

4. Free access to an awesome community of like-minded youth workers throughout the city experiencing the same challenges and perhaps finding solutions through YPQI Community of Practices (CoP).

NOYA’s Expectations of Network Partners:

1. Complete the YPQI Network Year 10 Application by February 15th if you're interested in joining us this year.

2. Be prepared to look closely at your work and programming and think about how you can do the awesome work you're already doing even better.

3. Be enthusiastic about creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement around your work (with help!).

4. Be available for up to 3 Community of Practice (CoP) Sessions during the year.

5. Be available for Closing (May 2025)

6. Get in touch if you have questions!

How to Apply:

Your organization must complete the NOLA-YPQI Network Year 10 Application  by Saturday, February 15, 2024 to be a YPQI Year 10 Network Partner.

Additionally, you may access the Multi Site Application if your organization delivers youth programs at multiple locations.

Only complete the Fee Assistance Form if the network fee serves as a barrier to your organization’s participation in the YPQI Network and you would like consideration for fee assistance.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to LaDonya Williams: ladonya@noya.org.